Previously on TLA: Filling in as head of Slifer Red, Yugi tutored his charges to bring their grades up to passing levels and taking advantage of Chazz Princeton's attempt to ambush Jaden as a teaching moment.
Yugi gradually lost half his eight charges to Dark Duels and (despite suspecting the Obelisk Blues) has no leads on the responsible party.
Discussing the attacks with Alexis, the two realised that Yliaster and their proxies had likely not targeted three of the remaining survivors due to political ramifications that would come as a result.
A/N: This episode will feature an updated Duel layout using square brackets for game information in the paragraphs to distinguish against normal text; e.g. [L0/9999 ATK/9999 DEF]
"Storm shouldn't be a problem on our approach!" The pilot had to shout above the roar of her engine, even with the headsets over both their ears. While the storm wouldn't hit before their predicted arrival, it was mainly because she'd noticed it early and was rushing the last leg of their journey. "But the island is going to get a bit soggy tonight!"
"It's been through worse than a bit of rain." Her passenger seemed unphased by the growing cloud bank swirling around the island.
Monroe spared a glance at the mirror in the middle of her windscreen. She'd ferried more than a few VIPs to and from Duel Academy and, by and large, they barely acknowledged her presence. But the bespectacled figure in the main seating area had expressed genuine enthusiasm for her work. He was certainly a weird one.
"We're landing in a minute!" They shot across the island faster than most people would find safe but she'd managed to beat the worst of the winds to the landing pad. Landing was a bit shakier than normal until the dome closing overhead fought off the earnest rain. "We've now officially landed, and passengers are free to disembark. Academy Air would like to thank all travellers for their continued patronage but requests that they kindly stop booking last-minute flights through faculty connections as we cannot yet control the weather." She flicked rows of switches to slow the spinning blades overhead as the icon in the backseat flushed slightly.
"I'll probably be leaving in a few days?" He offered hopefully. "Is that enough warning or would it be better to take the boat?"
"For you?" Monroe cracked a wry grin. "I'll try to schedule the storms for another day." Sliding from her seat, she stretched upright and clicked several ligaments back into place. "Dr Rhodes has arranged a set of rooms for you to use while you're here." She gallantly helped the visitor clamber out of the aircraft. "They're not too far from mine, I can show you the way."
"Thanks." He shook her hand firmly. "But I know where I'm going." That tone explained in sufficient detail that it wasn't the prepared suite.
"What is it with those red coats and turning down good hospitality?" She sighed. "You know Dr Rhodes is gonna blame me for this."
"Let me worry about Alexis." Came the firm reply. "We go way back."
"You never said why you came last minute?" She called after the retreating back.
"Got a call from Chazz; said I should see the new Slifer leader in action." He shouted back over a shoulder. "I've been wanting to see Jaden anyway so I decided to take a few days for myself."
"Wait a second!" A door at the bottom of the stairwell slammed shut before she could correct the misconception. It seemed that Mr Princeton was as admiring of Yugi Mutou as he was dismissive of Syrus Truesdale.
Even in the slight rain and accompanying gloom, Syrus knew the route to the Slifer Dorm with his eyes shut. Excepting the one small hill about a hundred metres from the entryway, the entire journey was downhill. An experienced Slifer student (while being a target of constant mockery) was capable of navigating from the main doors of Duel Academy back to the ramshackle dorm with their eyes closed. It was all downhill for one, and the grass over the thick bed of gravel that branched off the real road was looser than the parts that surrounded it. What only a veteran knew was that there was an overlap between where the path looped back on itself and a narrow track through the outskirts of the forest that ran parallel to it. It meant less rain that made the slightly steeper incline firmer than the shallow run.
Syrus was making good time through the trees, making sure to keep regularly checking for the lighthouse beacon over the sea. Even unlit, it was the brightest sight near the sea and told him he hadn't strayed too far into the forest. "Hey, Slifer Slacker!" The insult brought Syrus to a stumbling halt. As a surprise for Jaden, he'd dragged out his old Slifer Red jacket and asked Alexis if it was possible to borrow one of the dorm-colourised Duel Disks while he was on the island. From the sounds of it, the rivalry between the two dorms had devolved back into petty fighting and name-calling.
"Who wants to know?" Obelisk Blue coats could blend into the shadows of a night this dark. The voice had come from somewhere off to his left, he was fairly sure, but he couldn't figure much more than that.
"I thought you'd have gotten the point by now," The voice shouted from the darkness. "Slifer Scum should get out of Duel Academy!"
A familiar beeping from his wrist told Syrus that his heckler was willing to cover his cowardice with card play. "I've got a few minutes to teach you some manners!"
(Turn 1)
OB-FTW: LP: 4000 Hand:6 Field: None Graveyard: None
Syrus: LP: 4000 Hand:5 Field: None Graveyard: None
"I set one monster and end my turn!" Syrus glanced at the display and snickered quietly. OB-FTW? Obelisk Blue For The Win? What a ridiculous alias.
(Turn 2)
OB-FTW: LP: 4000 Hand:5 Field: 1 Monster Graveyard: None
Syrus: LP: 4000 Hand:6 Field: None Graveyard: None
"Since you have a monster and I have none, I can Special Summon the magnificent Cyber Dragon [L5/ATK 2100/DEF 1600]!" Roaring up to his side of the field, Syrus had spent his years since Duel Academy learning to fully harness his brother's Cyber and Cyberdark monsters. "Cyber Dragon, destroy his face-down monster!" A digital stream of destruction erased the card and left a curious item floating in place. "What's that?" It looked like a crescent moon with a tiny orb hovering between the curved horns.
"Since you destroyed Magician of Faith, the Flip Effect kicks in and lets me add one Spell from my graveyard to my hand." The already angry voice sounded petulant this time. As it was the start of the Duel, there wasn't a target for the effect and it went unused.
(Turn 3)
OB-FTW: LP: 4000 Hand:6 Field: None Graveyard: 1 Monster
Syrus: LP: 4000 Hand:5 Field: 1 Monster Graveyard: None
"I summon the Obnoxious Celtic Guard [L4/ATK 1400/DEF 1200]!" Syrus knew the upgraded version of the Celtic Guard as well as any fan of Yugi Mutou. Besides a slightly darker artwork, this variant couldn't be destroyed by a monster with 1900 or more ATK. "Obnoxious Celtic Guard, attack Cyber Dragon!"
"What?" The Celtic warrior screamed in pain as electricity crackled through his sword and up both arms. Syrus couldn't understand the tactic: unlike the days of Duellist Kingdom, Cyber Dragon wouldn't lose ATK points in response to an unkillable attacker.
(Turn 4)
OB-FTW: LP: 3300 Hand:5 Field: 1 Monster Graveyard: 1 Monster
Syrus: LP: 4000 Hand:6 Field: 1 Monster Graveyard: None
"I draw." What exactly? A cheerful double-barrelled monster that he must've put in during his trip. One with a perfect effect. "I summon Zweiroid [L2/ATK 700/DEF 1000]." His new Roid monster hunkered down with a rough glower. "By discarding a monster from my hand, I can increase its ATK by 1000 points." And that power boost brought it right into the sweet spot between being strong enough to slay the guard and weak enough not to trigger the curse that kept him from dying. [OB-FTW Life Points: 3300 → 3000]. "Cyber Dragon, attack with Evolution Burst!" His opponent's Life Points dropped to a meagre 900 and Syrus felt momentarily bad. "What happened after I left? Obelisk Blues used to be tougher than this!"
(Turn 5)
OB-FTW: LP: 900 Hand:6 Field: None Graveyard: 2 Monster
Syrus: LP: 4000 Hand:4 Field: 2 Monster Graveyard: 1 Monster
"I set one card." A card fizzled in the gloom and Syrus honed in on the image. There was an outline barely visible in the pixels of light before it merged back into the shadows. OB-F… 'Obi' looked barely much taller than Syrus had become.
(Turn 6)
OB-FTW: LP: 900 Hand:5 Field: 1 Monster Graveyard: 2 Monster
Syrus: LP: 4000 Hand:5 Field: 2 Monster Graveyard: 1 Monster
Zweiroid dissolved into the usual shards of light which diverted from the norm by coalescing into a single pillar of light. "Look, up in the sky! It's UFOroid!" Swooping down from the sky came a scowling visitor from the heavens. With only 1200 ATK, it was at the midpoint between Zweiroid's normal and enhanced values but didn't require a constant sacrifice. "UFOroid, shine the spotlight on what's under that card!" It was a calculated risk. If the monster were weak enough to fall, Cyber Dragon would end the Duel in the next attack.
"Nimble Momonga's effect now activates!" Obi sounded an aggressive mix of smug and jubilant about the turn of play. "I now gain 1000 Life Points and can summon my other two Momongas to the field." [OB-FTW Life Points: 900 → 1900]
"Nice move - Cyber Dragon, take down your new target!" His hidden opponent gained another thousand points at the cost of another monster. [OB-FTW Life Points: 1900 → 2900]
(Turn 7)
OB-FTW: LP: 2900 Hand:6 Field: 1 Monster Graveyard: 4 Monster
Syrus: LP: 4000 Hand:4 Field: 2 Monster Graveyard: 2 Monster
"Nimble Momonga switches to attack mode." Syrus started to pay a little more attention to the state of play. Obi had a full hand of cards that could change the balance of odds in a single move. "Momonga, attack Cyber Dragon!"
"Wait, wha" Syrus' mechanical monster had obliterated the flying squirrel before he could fully form the question. [OB-FTW Life Points: 2900 → 1800 → 2800] Obi had turned the Obnoxious Celtic Guard against a stronger opponent earlier with not a hint of advantage. Now he had an empty field and fewer Life Points than he had started the round with. Instinct told Syrus there was a reason.
"I summon The Unhappy Girl [L2/400 ATK/300 DEF]!" Cowering behind a tree was a trembling waif that seemed more like a dragon victim than a dragon slayer. Being a professional Duellist came with a level of callousness yet Syrus felt a twinge of guilt over involving such a tiny girl. "From my hand, I activate Pain To Power!"
Syrus instantly stopped feeling guilty as the shadows in the forest deepened against the revolving lighthouse in the distance. That chill wasn't something that people could forget. Maybe they were close enough to the Slifer Dorm that Jaden could sense the change into a Dark Duel. "Pain To Power grants a monster ATK equal to the amount of Life Points I've lost!" That didn't sound too bad. Obi was only 1200 Life Points down, maxing The Unhappy Girl out at 1600 ATK. At least, that was the math. But Syrus felt a lot less sure when the cowering maiden slowly grew to outsize the trees and glower down with a snarl. "Crush that tin dragon!"
Syrus dove behind a trunk of his own as the palm came slamming down on his Cyber Dragon. An unlucky tree was within impact range of the monster and flattened into matchsticks, a branch shooting off to spear through an unlucky neighbour as the ground shook in a Richter Five earthquake.
(Turn 8)
OB-FTW: LP: 2800 Hand:4 Field: 1 Monster, 1 Spell Graveyard: 5 Monster
Syrus: LP: 1500 Hand:5 Field: 1 Monster Graveyard: 3 Monster
What the heck was that?! Syrus could still feel the aftershock in his legs. "What happened?" Obi shouted from across the pitch. "I thought you were supposed to be tougher than this!" Syrus bit his tongue and checked the display on his Duel Disk again. In one move, he'd lost 2500 Life Points. That meant The Unhappy Girl had to be at 4600 ATK! How could that be, when Obi had only lost…
"Figured it out yet?" The attacker called out from his hidden vantage. "It's not how many I am below starting, it's how many I've lost in total!" That was why he'd been on a suicide mission with his monsters! All those lost points had been poured into The Unhappy Girl and now she was strong enough to hold her own against the largest monsters.
Looking at his hand, the suddenly uncertain Pro evaluated the options; overpower, depower, direct assault. Can't overpower right now, depower was delayed, direct assault and hope it would have to be. "I activate Vehicroid Connection Zone!" Like Polymerization, this card could perform a Fusion Summon with an extra twist: the resulting monster couldn't be destroyed by effects or have its effect negated. "Come on out, Pair Cycroid [L6/1600 ATK/1200 DEF]!"
"A tandem bicycle?" Plenty of opponents had disregarded the 'Roid archetype before. All of them had fallen before the unusual monsters.
"Double speed means it can sneak past your defences and attack directly!" While losing 500 ATK in cost, the bicycle could perfectly wind around trees and strike the hidden opponent, bringing Syrus back into the running. [OB-FTW Life Points: 2800 → 1700] "UFOroid goes to defence, a card goes down, and the turn goes to you."
(Turn 9)
OB-FTW: LP: 1700 Hand:5 Field: 1 Monster, 1 Spell Graveyard: 5 Monster
Syrus: LP: 1500 Hand:1 Field: 2 Monster, 1 Spell/Trap Graveyard: 5 Monster, 1 Spell
"Unhappy Girl, make him an unhappy boy!" Those last few Life Points were readying to be smashed under the descending palm.
"Life Force!" Syrus managed to call out before the hand could make touchdown. "Phew." He sighed a breath of relief. Life Force could allow him to restrict any Battle Damage down to 400. Though he had lost Pair Cycroid, he was still in the running for another turn and the shield had protected him from any flying debris.
"I set a monster and a facedown." Obi snarled from the darkness.
(Turn 10)
OB-FTW: LP: 1700 Hand:3 Field: 2 Monster, 2 Spell/Trap Graveyard: 5 Monster
Syrus: LP: 1100 Hand:2 Field: 1 Monster, 1 Trap Graveyard: 6 Monster, 1 Spell
Obi had probably prepared a strong defence for the event that either his monster or that eerie spell was taken down. And there was a useful trend amongst monsters with high DEF - they usually had a low ATK. "I move UFOroid to attack mode." Life Force would keep him alive for another three attacks but Obi couldn't be sure of the same. Syrus had a good chance of finishing this on his terms but this was a risky move. "From my hand, I use Stop Defense on your facedown monster."
What happened next surprised him: instead of switching to attack mode, the card shattered into a fading spectre of a reaper. While this exercise had left him in a vulnerable state, he knew the sort of player he was facing: an extremely defensive tactician. Spirit Reaper was an effect monster that self-destructed when targeted by a card effect but couldn't be destroyed in a straight battle, exactly like The Unhappy Girl. Pain To Power was probably the main focus of his offence.
"I set one card and end my turn."
(Turn 11)
OB-FTW: LP: 1700 Hand:4 Field: 1 Monster, 2 Spell/Trap Graveyard: 6 Monster
Syrus: LP: 1100 Hand:0 Field: 1 Monster, 2 Spell/Trap Graveyard: 6 Monster, 2 Spell
"I don't believe in little green men." Which was all that The Unhappy Girl needed to smack the saucer out of the sky. Life Force protected Syrus another turn but he had barely two chances left. "That trap of yours only works on Battle Damage, not if you take an attack directly. One-in-three chance you'll draw a monster next turn."
"Smart guy," Syrus called out. "But UFOroid lets me summon a monster when it's destroyed in battle and you didn't even notice my Stealthroid being summoned!"
"Not so fast!" A horn call sounded from the trees. "Solemn Judgement lets me cancel any effect at the cost of half my Life Points!"
"Don't you think you've lost enough?" Syrus peeked out from behind his tree. "Trap Jammer will keep you going for now!" A defensive player wouldn't let their opponent gain ground if they could prevent it. Now he only had to keep that momentum with an empty hand and a solo flyer.
"Wow, one monster?" Obi bragged from his hiding spot. "I'm quaking in my boots. In fact, I'll set a monster of my own and three more cards." More than the bravado, that move cemented for Syrus that he'd gotten to Obi. No turtle player would empty their entire hand unless desperate.
(Turn 12)
OB-FTW: LP: 1700 Hand:2 Field: 2 Monster, 4 Spell/Trap Graveyard: 6 Monster, 1 Trap
Syrus: LP: 700 Hand:1 Field: 1 Monster, 1 Trap Graveyard: 7 Monster, 2 Spell/Trap
"Cogs in a machine." Syrus whispered to himself. It had been meant as an insult by some idiot in a tournament the year before but he'd taken the words to heart. Each card in his Deck was weak individually yet came together to form an unstoppable machine. "I draw!" He drew. "What the heck?"
"Ha! I knew it!" Professional differences aside, he was starting to dislike this guy. Dark Duels, raw arrogance, and thicker than the mud forming in the downpour. "Slifers can never match up!"
"Shut up." His Deck had brought him this far, Syrus could believe there were another couple of gears to shit to. "I activate Ultimate Machine Union!" The unfamiliar draw let him remove any Roid monsters from his Graveyard to perform a Fusion Summon. What was putting Syrus on edge was the lack of compatible materials available to him.
Courtesy of the KaibaCorp Department of Inclusivity Strategy, the standard Duel Disk design incorporated a screen menu for anyone unable to utilise the bleeding edge voice recognition. Normally for those with speech impediments, it was utilised by those who had no idea what they were looking for and needed to find viable options. "Oh, hell yeah!" The single reading was everything he could have wanted. "I remove Gyroid, Zweiroid, Cycroid, Pair Cycroid, and UFOroid to call forth Barbaroid, the Ultimate Battle Machine!"
A set of ghostly bells rang out through the night as Cycroid and Pair Cycroid circled through the trees. Zwieroid and Gyroid spun past in a blur of movement as UFOroid swooped around to gather them all up in that infallible beam of light. "Come forth!" Dropping from the sky (and sacrificing another pair of trees to collateral damage) was a bloody machine pieced together from the departed monster, that nearly equalled The Unhappy Girl. [L10/4000 ATK/4000 DEF]
"Is that it?" Obi mocked. "Going out with a bang?" He was right to be relieved. Monsters with stats that high rarely had equally powerful effects.
"You know what your problem is?" Syrus hadn't seen more than a vague outline of his opponent this entire time but he had enough insight to build a psychological profile. "Always looking down on the little guy. Stealthroid, attack The Unhappy Girl!"
"What?" Shifting wings to a supersonic sweep, the stealth aircraft rocketed up into the sky and circled the island to build up speed.
"Thanks to my Life Force, I can limit the damage down to 400 Life Points." [Syrus Life Points: 700 → 300]. "Due to the effect of Stealthroid, it can destroy a Spell or Trap at the end of the attack. Sayonara, Stealthroid!" Smashing against the behemoth, a single missile slipped past and shattered the Pain to Power card lurking in the undergrowth, shattering it instantly. "Barbaroid, put her out of her misery!" The terrified waif trembled beneath the approaching onslaught.
"Don't get too carried away." Another Trap materialised in the gloom. "Big Burn prevents me from taking damage while I have a monster and The Unhappy Girl can't be destroyed by battle!" Worse, any monster that attacked her would be frozen in place and unable to attack while she was on the field.
"Don't get too carried away." Like Obi had earlier, Syrus threw his own words back at his opponent. "Barbaroid can negate a monster's effects and inflicts 1000 points of damage when they're destroyed." The Unhappy Girl looked suitably distressed as she was obliterated by a beam of electrified light. [OB-FTW Life Points: 1700 → 700] "And, it's last trick, Barbaroid can attack twice each turn!"
Obi frantically checked his options. Spirit Barrier wouldn't negate the effect damage, Upstart Goblin had been meant as a bluff to reinforce his field, and Big Burn would be no use as it removed all monsters from their graveyards. Even though Soldier Penguin had been meant to clear the field for a final assault, Barbaroid was going to prevent even that minor victory. "Motherfu" Barbaroid opened full bore and ended the insult in an explosion of light and pain.
(Game Over)
Winner: Syrus Truesdale
In the smoke and flattened trees, Syrus had lost track of where Obi had been. Under the prospect of another Dark Duel from a hidden attacker and the storm now fully in swing, Syrus skipped the route of bravery in favour of the route of wisdom. Turning directly towards the treeline, he ran a straight line towards the Slifer Red dorm faster than a taco victim with incontinence.
Without the restraining factor of a stable path, Syrus slipped and tripped several times as the rain turned grass to mud and the downhill slope became a frequent slide without warning. Luckily, a strong tailwind was strong enough to shorten the journey substantially. In maybe a third of his estimated travel time, the sodden mess was on final approach to the dorm with enough mud plastered across him to plant potatoes.
One light was shining out to illuminate the home stretch. Though he knew all the other lights might have been broken, his empty stomach was extremely hopeful that the cafeteria light was on because there was hot food waiting inside.
Sliding to a halt outside the door, he tried to slide it open only to discover that someone must have finally fixed that rusty lock since he graduated. "Jaden!" Pounding on the frame, the stress of his ordeal came pounding down the hill and hit him all at once. What conversation had been going on inside fell silent as a figure waved and approached the far side.
Even with the mud covering his glasses and rain (maybe with a bit more watery input) Syrus recognised the flowing red coat of the Slifer Dorm leader in the opening doorway. "Ja~den!" Syrus wailed as he threw himself against the unyielding wall of raw power and determination. "Someone attacked me on the way down here and it was awful and they had this weird card and it made real damage and it really scared me and," In much the same way a blind man recognises a street by the type of stones under the shoe, Syrus became aware that the form he was clinging to had the wrong contours to belong to Jaden.
"You must be Syrus." A deep and rich voice smiled from above. "I've heard a lot about you." Backing away, Syrus received a shock barely secondary to his first Dark Duel in years. Standing in the dining room doorway was the absolute idol of Duellists around the world. "Come in, we're just about to have dinner." Yugi gestured behind him to where four students were leaning out to steal glances at the newcomer. "I think we've got a lot to talk about." Looking dazedly ahead, Syrus had enough clarity to realise that Yugi's apron read 'Thyme to Duel' on it before he collapsed gently across the threshold.
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